Billionaire Michael Bloomberg has expressed his backing for former Miami Mayor Manny Diaz to lead the foundering Florida Democratic Party, Politico reported on Tuesday.
It‘s a job many others are not interested in, after President Donald Trump trounced the Democrats in Florida, making it four consecutive losses in presidential races for the party, which has been out of power in the state for more than two decades and is short of funds.
The Democrat down-ticket candidates took such a beating that national party leaders are not confident Democrats can win the state in 2022, when Sen. Marco Rubio and Gov. Ron DeSantis, both Republicans, are up for reelection.
But Diaz, who earned a reputation as a turnaround artist in his home city, insists he can "rebuild the party by one precinct, one county at a time, bottom up and from the grassroots. I’m going to roll up my sleeves, put my head down and work my butt off.”
Current Chair Terrie Rizzo, whose term ends next year, has been harshly criticized for the party’s performance in the state and has not yet said if wants to seek another term.
Bloomberg, who is ready to donte large sums if Diaz becomes chairman, told Politico “No one is better suited for Florida Democratic Party chair than Manny Diaz. Manny ran the largest city in the state and intimately knows the districts and communities that Democrats lost this cycle. He is an inclusive leader who will expand the map and help us turn Florida blue again.”
Diaz also has the backing of local billionaire Jorge Pérez, who said “A lot of dreamers don’t do anything and a lot of guys that do small things don’t dream. Manny has ... that rare quality of combining them.”
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